With more than 100 agency selection consultants in the United States, it’s easy for e-commerce companies to vet marketing agencies before choosing a new partner. However, once you select and hire an agency, things don’t always work out the way you planned – they may still fall short of your goals and expectations. When this happens, it can cause setbacks, result in missed goals and ultimately lead to lost revenue for your brand.
At Response Mine, we’ve identified three common ways that agencies sometimes fall short.
Agencies lack project management experience
Although agencies tend to be very idea-driven, they often do not have the team or the systems in place to manage projects – at least not well. Today’s marketing requires lots of technical implementation, from tracking to reporting. Historically, marketing agencies only had to navigate the requirements put forth by their client’s Marketing Director. Now, however, agencies must communicate with multiple stakeholders that may span the IT, finance and web development departments. Without the ability and expertise to oversee projects and increase communication effectiveness and efficiency, many things can fall through the cracks.
Agencies are too focused on branding that doesn’t produce ROI.
Many marketing agencies report vanity metrics that don’t directly contribute to the ROI of their campaigns. This may include things like the number of likes on social media, the number of impressions, etc. Although these metrics have a place, it is important for agencies to move beyond them and find ways to track, measure, report and optimize the key indicators that do lead to sales.
Agencies are too aligned to their billing method
In today’s hyper digital age, marketing agencies must be nimble and be able to pivot to accommodate their client’s needs. Having multiple layers to navigate before work is started (i.e. proposal, meeting, scope of work, etc.) adds more time and creates unnecessary friction and delays.
Another potential issue is that agencies are often tactic-focused rather industry-focused. This positions them to develop strategies without considering what may work specifically for their client’s industry. Taking a one-size-fits-all approach to marketing can leave many clients frustrated that their campaigns aren’t congruent to the space they’re in.
If you’re ready for a change, let’s connect!
Are you frustrated with your marketing agency? Are you looking for an agency that has project management experience, is focused on ROI, and has the flexibility to adjust to new trends? Let’s connect, we would love to share what is possible.
